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Talk:Races/@comment-7345250-20180515075957
Alright. I've now played through the game twice. Once as an Earth pony (w/ sword), and once as a Pegasus (w/ spear). Overall, the Pegasus run was easier. Maybe I was better accustomed to the controls. Maybe I knew better what to expect from the monsters. However, I think a couple of unique Pegasus traits made a big difference. (1) Flight is vastly superior to the Earth pony's Uppercut ability. (2) Javelin is one of the best skills in the game IMO, much better than Knife anyway. The first four stages were a breeze, except for the Diamond Dogs, whom I was expecting to be a challenge anyway. Later is when it became rough. The Giant Tarantula was hard. He was the easiest boss in the game as an Earth pony with Laevatain. But as a Pegasus with a Halberd that doesn't swing upward? It was undoubtedly the most agonizing part of the game. The "Blessed Wind" feature had me stabbing the wrong way half of the time because I was trying to turn with very tiny steps in order to stay in the safe spot under his chin, and the Halberd really isn't great for cutting webs. I tried to spam Javelin from below, but it becomes difficult when his pals drop in to juggle the pony. IIRC he resists electric damage too, so weapons were the only way to go. The second half of Manehattan was also an utter pain, even after gaining eleven levels in the Skeleton Cave. The Will-O-Wisps deal insane damage without Fortis Fio equipped, and non-elemental weapons barely even scratch them. My elemental skill of choice was Fusion Bolt, but it was too slow to hit them reliably. It took a lot of careful dodging and risky Bone tosses to grab the good loot on the way to the Dragon. In contrast, I struggled throughout much of the Earth pony run. Gilda was troublesome because the Uppercut trait is literally a double-edged sword, and Critical Arts by sword require catching her grounded. By far, the hardest part was the Diamond Dogs. At sword-range, it is very difficult to evade Rover's dive attack, and it is hard to reach Spot without Uppercut or the underwhelming Axe skill. Thankfully, Fido's jump is very easy to dodge once the others are down. I should add here that Shield is a lifesaver. It nullifies Rover's gem attack and completely neuters other horrors like Bone Pillars. Don't leave home without it. I should also add that the run became significantly more doable when elemental swords were made available after Ghastly Gorge. The Appaloosan Mine is a breeze, Ahuizotl notwithstanding. He, like Gilda, likes to hug the top of the screen. The arcing motion of the sword is thus not to be underappreciated, and I really do not want to imagine an Earth pony/spear run. That would be rather hellish. The Stonewall trait is only useful when one makes a poor dodge and realizes it quickly enough to slam the spacebar, making it very niche. At least it has more of a use than the Drop Kick. I think I like the Earth pony playstyle more, especially after blazing through Canterlot with Mormegil and Fire Mail (which completely destroys Tin Men), but it's interesting how they both have different applications. What's a cakewalk to one is often an ordeal to the other.